History of The National Times

The National Times features the best in analysis, commentary and opinion from Fairfax Media's established print and online mastheads, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, brisbanetimes.com.au, watoday.com.au - and more than 160 of our rural and regional titles across Australia. The website is also home to an expert team of contributors and bloggers - breaking views on matters ranging from arts to politics, religion to sport, cinema and philosophy as and when news happens.

The site is dedicated to promoting the best in Australian journalism: words, images and art. It also seeks out opinions and articles from our readers and encourages debate and discussion.

The National Times evokes memories of fearless investigative journalism and for being the home of an uncompromising style of reporting it pioneered for nearly two decades. The newspaper, which infamously reproduced secret documents from the Costigan royal commission that led to Kerry Packer being labelled the Goanna, was a short-lived entity, folding in the wake of the 1987 share crash. But it remains a star in the nation's journalistic history.

The National Times started in 1971 at a time when many Australians were questioning our involvement in the Vietnam War and our place in the world: our culture, institutions, the arts and gender and racial equality. Almost immediately, the masthead set itself apart for its rigorous and provocative stories and images - quickly building a reputation for adventurous journalism. Because of its daring, reporters, editors and illustrators were often fending off accusations of unbalanced journalism. These criticisms came mainly from the political, legal and corporate elite, but also from a nervous Fairfax board. Rather than being about sloppy practices, the attacks, more often than not, reflected a shock about a fearless brand of journalism that was to become the hallmark of the National Times. It was a controversial and dangerous, yet exciting time in the Australian media.

The National Times was the brainchild of Vic Carroll, the then managing editor of the Australian Financial Review, who spotted a gap in the market for a quality weekly uncovering the news behind the news in politics, business and the arts, with a "heavier analytical content" than its competitors. It started on a shoestring budget, with Trevor Kennedy as its inaugural editor. It forever struggled to turn a profit, or even break even. Some of Australian journalism's most revered practitioners would occupy the editor's chair during the 16 years it existed, including Max Suich, David Marr, Brian Toohey and Evan Whitton. Equally, the newspaper fostered - and gave creative licence and energy to - some of the most authoritative and loved writers and artists, like Wendy Bacon, David Hickie, Robert Haupt, Valerie Lawson, Larry Pickering and Patrick Cook, among many others.

During its life, readers of The National Times were treated to at-times unconventional, but always searing, investigative and feature pieces on topics previously deemed off limits: starting in the 1970s with a Max Walsh critique on the flawed leadership of Prime Minister William McMahon. A few years later, Anne Summers reported on gang rape allegations in a small North Queensland town; and a confronting piece on demeaning sexual rituals at St Paul's College, University of Sydney by Summers and David Marr, also caught attention. Each article reflected a pugnacious new style of reporting, and underscored the newspaper's unrelenting style.

The National Times broke the mould in so many areas: publishing a previously unthinkable 26,000 word, three-part epic from Whitton on Australia's engagement in the Vietnam War from leaked cables and an exhaustive examination of government and defence documents. It dared to run - on the day before his funeral - a front-page article detailing NSW Premier Robert Askin's links to corruption with the straightforward headline: 'Askin: Friend to Organised Crime.' Unsurprisingly, the article drew howls of protest. But the Board, although sharing some of the community's distaste about the article's timing, did not limit their actions to just berating those associated with the piece. It urged greater effort be expended on further similar articles, horrified at the seeming extent of institutionalised malpractice. The Askin piece therefore gave birth to a courageous period in crime and corruption reporting, led by the National Times, the likes of which have never been revisited.

There followed revelations about corruption in the police, judiciary and government, perhaps best epitomised by an article by Marian Wilkinson about prisoners being released ahead of time by the NSW Corrective Services Minister Rex Jackson. The revelations came amid inquiries that eventually resulted in Jackson being jailed for corruption. The National Times also sensationally published articles by Bacon detailing secret evidence from a parliamentary inquiry into the activities of the High Court judge, Lionel Murphy.

But perhaps, more than any piece, the National Times is best remembered for its publication of secret case summaries from the Costigan Royal Commission - and the ensuing label Goanna.

The royal commission had given the code name The Squirrel to a prominent business figure it claimed was allegedly involved in drugs and corruption, later revealed to be Kerry Packer. To try to disguise Packer's identity, the newspaper toyed with a new label The Possum until an inspired Adele Horin chimed in with the Goanna. The tag stuck, and the Goanna series caused near hysteria throughout the country. Within the week, Packer had outed himself as the reptile that was the subject of serious criminal accusations that were never sustained.

This website, nationaltimes.com.au, will focus on local and international commentary, analysis and opinion. In all that it does, it will seek to emulate its forerunner's dedication to the highest journalistic standards and ethics - and to giving its readers the best words, pictures and art.

Sources: Company of Heralds, A century and a half of Australian publishing Gavin Souter Heralds and Angels, The House of Fairfax 1841-1990, Gavin Souter